


Poison Flower

by cantabileChaos



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions, Pokemon
Genre: Alcohol, Angst, Blood, Corruption, Gang Violence, Other, Promiscuity, Redemption
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-16
Updated: 2017-12-26
Packaged: 2019-02-15 10:39:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13029291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cantabileChaos/pseuds/cantabileChaos
Summary: Team Skull may get a redemption, but in this AU the player character (represented by my personal player oc) becomes corrupted. Just a self-indulgent fic I'm doing for fun.





	1. Chapter 1

Calla started off her Island Challenge strong, but felt her growth begin to slow after her first encounter with Guzma. Everyone kept commenting on how strong she was, but what if she had peaked already. She was already older than what was the average for young people starting their trials. Most of the Team Skull grunts were her age, and she couldn’t help but picture herself running around stealing to make a living. Pokemon battles were all she really knew, but she couldn’t spend her life battling kids for pennies, losing to knew trainers who were born stronger than her. 

Nanu let her enter Po Town. He distrusted her, but didn’t care enough to stop her. He must have let a hundred young adults seedier and less polite into the Team Skull headquarters in all his years, and yet she got the feeling he carried himself with a bit more caution around her specifically. Calla suddenly became aware of everything about the way she presented herself. Most of the Team Skull grunts tried to be intimidating, but came off as goofy. She had the confidence of an overly-praised trainer, coupled with something possibly sinister brewing in her gut. Nanu nearly hesitated when he let her in, but Calla assured him she was just there to retrieve a stolen Pokemon.

Back in Kanto, Calla had seen her fair share of Team Rocket members. Team Skull was nothing like them. Half the grunts didn’t even try to battle her, some even welcomed her as a new member. The battles were easy enough, until suddenly it wasn’t about Pokemon battles anymore. Physical fighting broke out, and Calla almost wasn’t sure if the grunts turned on her or if she had started the altercation herself. Either way, she was taken down in minutes. Most of the grunts weren’t much bigger than her, but they definitely outnumbered her. Maybe Nanu wasn’t being dramatic when he suggested she might be killed in Po Town. Calla fell to her knees and a few grunts began dragging her away, her legs dragging painfully across the wet concrete. She faded in and out of consciousness. Every now and then a grunt would kick at her side and swear at her. When they got inside, they dropped her on the filthy carpet and left, their loud and excited voices echoing throughout the mansion as they dispersed. Some went upstairs to alert their boss and some went back outside, but no one bothered to stay and watch Calla. 

She was awake, but couldn’t move without pain. She just waited for someone to come and either rescue her or finish her off. Casual voices still echoed through the cluttered and run down mansion, but no one approached her. After a while, Calla began to slowly drag herself to the nearest wall to prop herself up. There was a thin streak of blood left behind her. Her external wounds weren’t too terrible, but who knows what kind of grime transferred from the carpet into her open wounds during her struggle to gain mobility. 

The walls of the mansion spun around Calla as she sat, propped against the wall and a box full of junk. A small group came into view. A few grunts along with Guzma stood in front of the injured girl. The last thing she felt before blacking out was a cold hatred towards the leader of Team Skull, but he showed no satisfaction in her suffering. He displayed no sinister smirk, just a look of stern concern. The grunts behind him looked as if they had been scolded and were back to apologize like children who caused trouble on the playground. Calla was out cold before anyone could get a word in with her, Nanu was called in to retrieve her, but this wouldn’t be her last visit to Po Town.


	2. Chapter 2

Nanu had met with Guzma and a small gathering of ashamed grunts at the entrance to Po Town. It was a rare occurrence for something like this to happen, but it wasn’t the first time. Every now and then a particularly overconfident trainer would venture into Po Town in an attempt to singlehandedly overthrow Team Skull. Most trainers would either get a little dinged up and leave with their tails between their legs or surrender and become a part of the gang for protection, but there was always some cocky Ace Trainer with a few selectively bred pokemon who got in too deep. That’s when Nanu was called in to retrieve whatever was left of the poor sap and their pokemon.

Despite his cruel and violent reputation, Guzma wasn’t particularly fond of these incidents. Seeing any child broken and bloody brought back bad memories. Nanu felt shock only the first time this happened. The first beating was the most brutal. Nanu carried the limp body of the boy, no older than 17, down the cobblestone street as fast as he could, wincing every time he heard a bone crack, but half way through the town the life left the poor kid. The grunts who did it were sent away from Po Town. Team Skull stayed hidden for months afterwards. The boy had no known relatives and was supposedly originally from Unova, he had no real funeral service. Somehow the story never quite reached the public and was chalked up to just be crazy rumors. Everyone knew Team Skull wasn’t a real threat. For a brief time afterwards, Nanu did his best to bar any trainers from entering Po Town. It was no use. There was always a pushy child who found some way to get in despite Nanu’s best efforts to protect them. A few years later when it happened again, he realized it was no use. The second trainer survived, but still sustained a lot of damage.

Nanu was “escorted” to the mansion and let inside. It was all for show, he could wonder in whenever he felt like it. Guzma held his tongue. Nanu could tell he was pissed off and probably reliving a thousand of his own beatings. He only grunted and nodded towards the latest victim. Calla had been left untouched and unmoved from the spot where she had dragged herself to. Even unconscious, there was a look of determination on her face. Guzma stood close by, almost in a protective manner, as Nanu carefully lifted the beaten girl into his arms. She wasn’t completely faded and shifted a little in discomfort.

“She’ll live,” Nanu assured Guzma, his voice devoid of emotion. Guzma crossed his arms and nodded. Nanu left unattended. Some grunts watched him leave with Calla and other hid. The rain just kept pouring.

“You did it, kid. You defeated Team Skull.” Nanu paused after saying this, as if waiting for an answer. “I’ll make sure the press hears about this. I can see the headline now. ‘Young Hero Takes Down Entire Gang All By Herself’. And to think, I was sure you were just going to get yourself killed.” Calla moved slightly. “Don’t be modest, kid. Old Guzma never saw it coming.” The two exited Po Town, leaving the distant sound of Guzma yelling behind them.


	3. Chapter 3

“I thought you’d said you’d get me sent back home if anything happened,” Calla grumbled from the couch.

“You’ve only been out for a few hours. Besides, I wasn’t even sure who to call. Do you even still live with your parents at your age?” Nanu didn’t look at Calla. He was busy feeding far too many Meowths.

“When I left for my Island it was understood that I wasn’t coming back.” Calla didn’t move, she wasn’t sure how bad her injuries were and didn’t want to make any of them worse.

“Classic Team Skull backstory.”

“I wasn’t there to join them.”

“That’s right, you’re the plucky young hero who saves the day by beating the crap out of a kid and then getting jumped by his friends.” Nanu was obviously losing patience. He never did like the overconfident brooding type.

“Team Skull are bad guys. Why’s it matter if I rough up a few of them?” Calla knew she was in the wrong, but she didn’t want to get shut up by this old man. Nanu stood up and slowly dragged a chair over to where Calla was reclined. The legs of the chair made an awful sound against the floor. Nanu positioned the chair a few feet away from Calla and sat in it backwards.

“For real, kid. What’s your deal,” Nanu asked with absolutely no emotion whatsoever. He was look in Calla’s direction, but seemed to be looking through her. Calla still didn’t move. She looked straight up at the ceiling, avoiding even the potential for eye contact.

“Did you bandage me up,” She asked, not sure what to say.

“Nurse joy makes house calls. She’s in the other room tending to that kid you attacked. Don’t change the subject.”

“I just went to Po Town to get Yungoos back. I still need to so if you’ll excuse me-” Calla turned awkwardly on the couch in an attempt to get up. She was in pain, but not too much to move.

“No need. Hala’s grandson took care of it.” Nanu watched Calla with the same unwavering expression as she tested each limb to see what hurt. She was still avoiding eye contact.

“Hau?” She asked. The thought of Hau succeeding where she failed made Calla feel some combination of embarrassment and anger. She had pummeled him in every battle they had. How could he have gotten good enough to surpass her? Maybe she just wasn’t good enough anymore.

“He got out unscathed because he didn’t try to kill one of their own on Team Skull turf.”

“That’s not how it went down,” Calla snapped. “My team got knocked out. What was I supposed to do?”

“Run home,” Nanu replied coldly. “Do you always beat up the people you lose to?”

“I never lose,” Calla said, finally making eye contact. For a split second, Nanu’s expression changed. For the first time in years he was surprised, even if it was only for a moment. The girl’s eyes were just plain dark brown, but there was something truly terrifying behind them. A hatred that wasn’t easy to fix. It was a hatred her soul lived in. Nanu gathered himself.

“You lost today. You lost the battle, lost the fight and may have lost your mind.” Nanu paused for a second to take a good look at Calla. She was just a kid, well, young adult. She was short and shaky and beaten up pretty bad. Nanu suddenly felt guilty for giving her such a hard time. She wasn’t a monster. There was something brewing inside, but it wasn’t evil. Given the right influence it could be, but it didn’t have to be. He could help. He suddenly felt a little bit of the hope he used to have. “Come on, we’re gonna set things right.” Calla begrudgingly followed him, limping a little bit behind.

“I thought you were kidding,” Calla half-whispered as soon as she walked into the room. Laid out on a folding table was the Team Skull grunt she had gotten physical with before the others got involved. He was in bad shape. Nurse joy was on the other side of him, crafting a splint for his arm.

“I come to Po Town a lot,” Nurse Joy said in an oddly cheery voice. She wasn’t in uniform and her hair was in a different style than what was the norm. “I don’t work at the Po Town Pokémon Center anymore, but these guys always keep me busy. I just can’t help but return to help every time one of these boneheads gets injured. It may not be the Po Town I used to know, but it’s still my duty to care for the sick and injured. Plus they’re just so good to me. That boss of theirs actually pays me to care for his pokemon. I loved my old job, but golly I never got paid before. Tommy here should be find with a little bed rest and maybe a fruit or something. I swear these kids only eat junk food all day.” As the woman talked, Calla noticed more abnormalities. This Nurse Joy had chin-length hair that looked as if it had been cut with a dull blade and was dressed in street clothes that almost resembled what Team Skull wore. She had a white shirt on and underneath Calla could just make out the dark outlines of a few small tattoos. “I noticed you use all poison types. The love you very much I can tell, but you have to be careful. I treated both you and Tommy for poisoning when I first got here. Probably just a poorly-aimed attack in all of the commotion.” Nurse Joy packed up her things and left with a polite nod to Nanu.

“She’s the sweetest nurse I know,” Nanu said with an uncharacteristic note of admiration in his voice. “She’s had a tough life, though.” Calla watched Joy let herself out and then turned to the boy on the table. He was probably about the same age as she was. The bandanna had been removed from his face, which made him look a lot less menacing. His eyes were half open looking to the side.

“I wish she wouldn’t call me by my real name,” He mumbled. Nanu gave Calla a gentle and awkward pat on the back as encouragement to say something to him. Calla just examined his injuries in amazement. She couldn’t believe she had done this much damage. She was almost proud in a horrible way. She put on a fake worried face and was about to say something when someone else walked in.

“You two are out of your skulls,” An unnecessarily loud voice announced from just outside the room. The Team Skull leader had let himself in. Nanu didn’t seem surprised or concerned about this. “I wanna know which one of you brats I’m gonna have to beat down for this mess.” It was clear that Guzma was just saying this to keep up his image. He was clearly very relieved to see that his grunt was okay. Nanu led Guzma out by the arm, murmuring something that was obviously about one of the two kids.

“What now,” Calla asked the grunt who looked like he was trying to listen in on the conversation between Nanu and Guzma.

“You’re gonna be one of us now, right?” The grunt said this as if it was obvious. Calla looked down at her feat and then to the two older men. Nanu had his back to her, but Guzma was staring her down.

“I don’t know.”


	4. Chapter 4

“All I’m saying is it takes one to know one,” Nanu argued quietly. Him and Guzma were only just outside the room that the other two were in.

“Look, I’m not your babysitter, bro. I can’t look after some angry kid just cause you don’t want her causing trouble.” Guzma’s voice was considerably louder. He didn’t seem to care if the other two heard him. “Besides, I’m not comfortable having someone like that in Team Skull.”

“No one said she has to join Team Skull. Wouldn’t you want someone strong like that on your side anyways?” Nanu couldn’t believe he was encouraging Guzma to take in a trainer who could actually be a threat. It was better than just letting her go rogue, though. Team Skull never did much damage, but she had already proven that on her own she was at least somewhat dangerous.

“Doesn’t matter how good she is, she’s crazy. I can tell just by looking at her.” Guzma looked through the doorway behind Nanu and saw Calla staring back at him, the cuts and bruises on her face only making her look angrier. “She’s like that Gladion brat, but even he has enough humility not to go nuts.”

“That’s the whole reason why I want you to talk to her. She’s troubled. She reminds me of you the day you snapped.” Nanu thought back to a time when Guzma was just an awkward kid. No one would have expected a kid so quiet and docile to become so violent. Of course, no one knew what happened behind closed doors.

“So lemme get this straight. Your plan to prevent this kid from becoming a dangerous criminal, is to toss her under the wing of a dangerous criminal. Maybe I’m just dumb or something, but that seems like a bad idea.” Guzma looked again into the room. Calla was just chatting with the grunt. It was like a switch was flipped and she had turned back into a normal kid. Something about it… hurt. “Yeah alright. She’s got immunity in Po Town, but I’m not going out of my way to make her feel at home. And if she goes berserk again, we’re done with this little experiment.”

“I wonder when those grunts are gonna realize their big strong boss is really just a big softy,” Nanu teased, still with almost no shift in tone.

“Listen, you got me watching after your latest sob story. Don’t blow it.” Guzma stomped into the room with the grunt and Calla. “You two are getting awfully chummy for a couple of people who still got each other’s blood on your clothes. You good to go back to Po Town,” He asked the grunt.

“Yeah boss I’m more ready than I’ll ever be,” the grunt announced enthusiastically just before trying to sit up and being shot back down by pain. “Just… give me… a sec,” he winced. Calla quietly apologized to the boy, seemingly trying to hide the fact that she was sorry from both Guzma and Nanu.

“Drapion might be able to carry him,” Calla reluctantly suggested. “She carried me on her back one time when I twisted my ankle. She’s a little small, but she’s strong.” Calla ran into the other room and came back with her satchel and one pokeball in hand. She released Drapion and said something quietly to the odd pokemon. “She seems okay with the idea.

"Sounds fun,” said the grunt, who was probably just glad he wouldn’t have to walk anywhere.

“It’s up to you. I’m fine holding him here if you don’t approve,” Nanu said to Guzma. The Team Skull leader contemplated for a moment with a sour look on his face.

“Fine, but only because I know your buddies would keep me up all night asking for details if I don’t return with you.” Guzma turned to Calla. “We’ll send Drapion back when we’re done.”

“Uh, no way. I’m going with her.” Calla stepped towards Guzma and looked him straight in the eyes. “My team and I stick together no matter what.” Guzma thought of his beloved bugs and realized he couldn’t counter that, and since Calla had partial immunity he couldn’t just steal from her. Who know what kind of rampage she’d go on if he took one of her pokemon.

“Fine, but if you don’t behave I’ll kick your ass, little trainer.” Guzma sustained eye contact. Nanu cleared his threat, but the two were still in the middle of a little standoff, both trying to prove they had the meaner glare. “Let’s get going,” Guzma finally announced.


	5. Chapter 5

“Sooo, that’s a bug type right?” Guzma pointed to Calla’s Drapion, who was almost effortlessly carrying the injured grunt.

“Dark and poison.” Calla still maintained a cold demeanor towards the Team Skull leader. She had no personal grudge against him specifically, but realized as she stepped into Po Town that she maybe hadn’t given herself the emotional healing time she required, or physical healing time for that matter.

“How is that not a bug type,” Guzma continued, ignoring Calla’s forced apathy towards his small talk. “Look at it, it’s got pinchers and mandibles and everything.”

“She evolved from a bug type, but Drapion isn’t a bug type anymore.” Calla still kept her expression and tone neutral, but felt a little amusement at how worked up Guzma was getting over this.

“That doesn’t make any sense, dawg. It still looks like a bug and it evolved from a bug, I saw it use X-Scissor. How is it not a big?” Guzma become more and more animated as he talked.

“How should I know? I’m no pokemon expert.” Calla couldn’t help but laugh a little. She was purposely facing forward, but could still see a black and white angry blur out of the corner of her eye every time Guzma talked.

“Maybe in Alolah it is a bug type, boss,” the grunt suggested from his place resting in Drapion’s increasingly uncomfortable arms. Calla had suggested riding on the pokemon’s back instead but the boy was too tall for that. “Some pokemon are different in other parts of the world than they are here.” No one commented on the subject any further. Everyone seemed satisfied with that clearly incorrect answer. “Hey, no offense to Drapion here,” the grunt smiled up at the helpful pokemon and she nodded back as sweetly as her face would let her. “But couldn’t Golisopod have carried me easier?”

“Yeah, but the poor thing’s all tuckered out after losing that battle against that Hau kid. He might not be the most powerful, but damn he’s got the spirit.” Guzma shook his head then looked at Calla who was visibly perturbed by even the mention of Hau surpassing her. “Hey, kid. You know envy is a sin, right,” Guzma mocked. He laughed way louder than necessary and watched as Calla’s face took on just a slight red tint and her knuckles turned white. “Woah there, so is wrath, honey. If you don’t cool it Team Skull will just have to kick your ass a second time.” This was an empty threat, but Guzma was ready to take action in case she did lose it.

“Hey, look at that. We’re here,” the grunt announced nervously, trying to break the tension. Even if him and Calla had made up, he still didn’t want to be around if she snapped again. Drapion took the grunt inside a messy little house full of other grunts who were both overjoyed and perplexed to see him in such a state. Their attention turned to Calla. “Nah, guys. She’s chill now.” They all turned to Guzma who was in the doorway. He nodded.

“She’s chill,” he confirmed. After getting the recovering grunt situated, Drapion returned to her pokeball and Calla began to leave on her own. “Wait, kid,” Guzma called sternly as Calla brushed past him. “You’re safe here. *If* you behave yourself.”

“Why, because I let you use my pokemon for ten minutes?” Calla crossed her arms and studied the Team Skull leader, trying to guess his game. “What’s your angle?”

“I’m gonna be honest with you, kid. Nanu out there thinks you’re some type of serial killer in the making and he thinks you and I are cut from the same stone. I don’t know one way or another and I don’t care much either way, but I do know he’s not gonna stop knocking on my door and letting you skitter in every time he finds you outside cold and hungry and I know if you do end up going on a little rampage he’s never gonna stop telling me I could have stopped you. So welcome to family, I guess. I don’t much want you here, but you won’t get the snot beat outta ya if you decide to come back. But let’s just keep a few things straight. Don’t hurt my grunts, know your place and remember I’m. The. Boss.” Guzma turned and headed down the main road to his mansion. Calla was planted in place, not sure what she felt. She was tempted to shout something and start a fight, but instead looked around the sad rainy town that was now a haven to her. If you can’t beat ‘em join 'em, and she could do both.


End file.
